I like to come here and bring some positivity to the situation but today is different – I am done with the whole ‘Big Brother’ thing here and I can’t hold it in any longer. I mean it, I have had enough!

We went to a nearby store called Home Bargains and saw a sign on the door which stated they now use facial recognition technology in their shop! (This is the same company who announced last year a £500 reward for reporting someone for shoplifting from their stores.)

Now before I get the whole ‘it’s for safety and security’ lectures, I’ll say this – don’t bother. Just don’t.

We have CCTV spying on us everywhere we go but apparently that’s not enough. Now we have to have our face scanned to determine whether or not we are allowed to be in the shop. Think I’m over-exaggerating? The plan for this whole nightmare is worse than you can imagine. Picture this:

You are late paying a bill or you get a parking ticket – walk into a shop and BOOM – your face triggers the staff to eject you from the store because you are in debt. Or maybe you’ve written a letter of complaint to your local MP or, God forbid, attended a protest; Facial Recognition going to get you. On benefits? Did you just pick up a bottle of wine? That will be reported too. There is no end to the ways this sort of thing will and is being used against us.

I know some other retailers now have customers scanning their receipts to be let OUT of the store. How long is it before we have to give finger prints and eye scans just to get our groceries?

I don’t want this to be the world I live in and I certainly don’t want it to be the world our son and his future family live in. Do we really need to be watched over like a flock of clueless sheep, by some tyrannical shepherd? Are we all happy to let this continue and say nothing?

Well I’m not.

This quote from Edward Snowden says it better than I can:

Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.”

Edward Snowden

And yes, I did contact them. Here’s their response:

Hello,

Thanks for getting in touch. I can confirm that your feedback has been passed on to the relevant department to review.

I would also like to assure you that Facewatch facial recognition is completely lawful, because it strictly adheres to the 6 “Data Protection Act Principles”.

Kind regards,

Home Bargains Customer Support

Main image: Image by Tumisu from Pixabay